Saturday, May 7, 2011

The birds and the bees

The birds will come later. We'll be joining several neighbors to create a chicken coop co-op.

But the bees have arrived!

Bees will build their honeycombs on these frames

EarthDoctorSon hustles the bees from his truck to our backyard

And gives them a once-over

The beekeeper checks his tools

The bees will feed off the orange stuff on the left. The queen was placed inside a marshmallow for safekeeping and the worker bees ate up the pillowed confection to get to the queen then encircled her and began to buzz to keep her warm.

Oh, Mr. B does love his little creatures!

Mr. B sprays them to slow and clump them

He's not taking any chances!

No chances whatsoever!

Ready, set, GO! EarthDoctorSon gets ready to flip the box over . . .

. . . and cast them into their new home

After which, he replaces some frames

places their good on top of the frame*

covers the frames and places more food on top

adds the penthouse suite

and their shiny new roof (I think the queen is in there, too).

And then he returns his attention to the bees that didn't get into the hive

and worries about them (hmmm...I wonder how I'd look in one of those hats?)

And Mr B joins the worryfest

while spectators PreciousGrrrlChid shivers and FriendofFamily thanks us for adding bees to the neighborhood.

oops . . . forgot to paint one little section

"Let's worry some more."

Uh-oh. Mr. B learns the hard way that a beekeeper must wear the veil more tightly

All in a day's work!

Happy to report that the hive is humming, and the bees are coming and going without incident.

They really are amazing little creatures.

Next year: honey!

. . .

* So a word about that pair of gloves.

realized just the other day that those gloves have had had multiple adventures in their lifetime. They were a gift to me from an amazing woman who, after surviving breast cancer, rode her bicycle not once but twice across the US. She gave them to me when I discovered how much I love riding my bike. But I found they also came in quite handy for mushing. I'm able to use them as glove liners because they give me enough dexterity to hook up my pups and stay dry.

I LOVED this post--thank you SO MUCH for sharing all of your new knowledge on bee keeping. I can't wait to hear more--and about chickens too. Remind me--I have a FANTASTIC oatmeal almond cookie recipe that uses honey as the majority sweetener (It does have sugar--but maybe you could sub in stevia?)

I also LOVED the part about the Queen in the Marshmallow. I capitalized it because I think that you would be just the person to turn that idea into a series of Grrrl Power childrens books!!!

What an exciting hobby you've begun!!! Met a beekeeper last week, just the hives as he experienced a colony collapse last summer and was expecting his shipment of bees over the weekend. I'm sure I would have had Mr. B's worrier expression (unnecessarily I'm told) if they were around.The more I heard, the more amazing! Loved your photos. Good luck with the honey! This couple loved sitting outdoors with coffee and watching the worker bees comings and goings.

Thank you, Oh My Goddess

Thank you, Alex the Girl

Thank you, Alix of Casa Hice

Thank you, Hilary of The Smitten Image

Thank you, authorblog

Thank you, Poetikat

Thank you, Pyzahn

Thank you, Joycee!

Thank you, Distracted by Shiny Objects

Frequent guest bloggers

Meet Cora and Charlotte, pure joy

Photo by ChrisAnton

Thank you, Jinksy

Old Irish Blessing

May the road rise to meet you,May the wind be always at your back.May the sun shine warm upon your face,the rains fall soft upon your fields.And until we meet again,May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

May God be with you and bless you:May you see your children's children.May you be poor in misfortune,Rich in blessings.May you know nothing but happinessFrom this day forward.

May the road rise up to meet youMay the wind be always at your backMay the warm rays of sun fall upon your homeAnd may the hand of a friend always be near.

May green be the grass you walk on,May blue be the skies above you,May pure be the joys that surround you,May true be the hearts that love you.

In memory of Aggie and Renie

Mosaics embedded in the ground at Clare's Well Retreat Farm

May you "step" softly and mindfully upon each tile, breathe deeply, and let gentle swirls of healing fill your mind, body, and spirit with peace.

Crown-Sahasrara

Inner wisdom, "beingness"

Third eye - Ajna

Soul force, consciousness, clarity

Throat - Vishudda

Self expression, security

Heart - Anahata

Compassion, love, tenderness, devotion

Solar plexus - Manipura

Personal power, digestion, expansiveness

Sacral - Svadhisthana

Relationships, creativity, joy, enthusiasm

Base - Muladhara

Sensuality, security, stability

All is well

The legal stuff

So about copyright. Let's just say that if a photo isn't credited to someone else, then I took it. That means the photos are Copyright 2012 Kathleen Kimball-Baker. Same goes for the writing here. It's all my stuff, unless I credited someone else. So, when it comes to photos, I'm all about sharing. But if you use one of my shots in a way that makes money, hey, share the wealth! I've got dogs to feed. But if you're just using it to share and share alike, I'd love it if you'd give me credit and link it back to my blog. About the writing, I'm honored if you'd like to cite it or use it. Same "rules" apply. And thanks!